MOSCOW, December 9 (RIA Novosti) -- Russia's lower house of parliament adopted a law Friday lifting the "ring fence" from around common shares in the energy giant Gazprom and ending foreign ownership restrictions. A total of 335 State Duma deputies voted for the law, with 80 against, and no abstentions.
The law lifts the "ring-fence" from around Gazprom shares, allowing foreigners to freely buy the stock in Russia and abroad. Up to 49% of Gazprom's common shares will be publicly traded with no ownership restrictions, but the government will retain its recently acquired majority control of the company.
Share liberalization will result in a huge increase in demand for the company's stock and significantly increase Gazprom's market capitalization. With a current market capitalization of $124 billion, Gazprom is priced much lower that its vast reserves of 114 billion barrels of oil equivalent would suggest. Judging by its international peers, in terms of prices and reserves, Gazprom's market capitalization should be in the area of $300 billion.
